Thursday, June 21, 2018

Close your eyes and turn back in time. It's 90's Dance Hits!

As 2018 summer begins, I find myself looking back in nostalgia over not just the past 6 months, but the past 20 years or so. Specifically, at all those 90s songs that still give me all the feelings. More than almost anything else, songs from early in my life bring back those memories in crystal clarity; I can remember where I was, what I was doing, how I was feeling, and sometimes even what I was wearing when I heard them. It's kind of spooky. But it's also pretty cool, so I wanted to share a list with you of the 90s songs I connect with most strongly, even... two and a half decades later.

So anyway, here they are, folks — the 10 songs from that time period that can still hit me right in the feels and send me skidding back in time to the 1990s.

Snap - Rhythm Is a Dancer

t was released in March 1992 and achieved huge success in many countries around the world, topping the charts in France, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Germany and the United Kingdom. It also reached the top 5 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the US Hot Dance Music/Club Play Singles. The single spent six weeks at the top in the UK where it was the second biggest selling single of 1992, surpassed only by Whitney Houston's version of "I Will Always Love You".

The song was the second single from the album The Madman's Return. It was written by Benito Benites, John "Virgo" Garrett III (aliases for German producers Michael Münzing and Luca Anzilotti), singer Thea Austin, and rapper Durron Butler aka Turbo B and produced by Snap!.

Snap! won the 1992 Echo award for the Best Selling Single of the Year with "Rhythm Is a Dancer".

Gala - Freed From Desire

"Freed from Desire" is a song written and recorded by the Brooklyn-based Italian singer and songwriter Gala. It was released in 1996 as the first single from her first album Come into My Life. "Freed from Desire" was a hit in many European countries, reaching number 1 in France and Belgium. The track was released in the UK in July 1997 and peaked at number 2 and spent 8 weeks inside the Top 10 and 14 weeks in total in the Top 75. Gala achieved a Diamond recording award in France, a Platinum record in Benelux and a Gold record in the United Kingdom.
The song was written and composed by Gala, and produced by Filippo Andrea Carmeni and Maurizio Molella

Real McCoy - Another Night

"Another Night" is a platinum selling crossover pop hit by the German group Real McCoy (also known as M.C. Sar & The Real McCoy). The single is featured on the group's album Another Night '95, which was the North American re-issue of their second album Space Invaders '94. The song was produced in Berlin, Germany by Juergen Wind (J. Wind) and Frank Hassas (Quickmix) in '93.
"Another Night" was an international hit, reaching No.2 in the United Kingdom and No.1 in Australia. In the US, the single peaked at No.3 on the Billboard Hot 100 during the holiday season of 94–95. It was also certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, spent 40 weeks in the Top 40 and became the best-selling single by a German act in American history.
In Billboard Magazine's Top 100 Songs of the First 50 Years of the Hot 100, "Another Night" was ranked at number 91.[1] As a number three hit, it is the lowest-ranked song to be listed on this chart. The song also brought the group the distinction of having the longest run at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 (11 non-consecutive weeks).

Ultra Nate - Free

"Free" is a song by American recording artist Ultra Naté released on March 31, 1997 by her record label Strictly Rhythm. The song was co-written by Naté , Lem Springsteen and John Ciafone while production was held by both Springsteen and Ciafone. "Free" was served as the lead single from her third studio album, Situation: Critical (1997). Musically, the song is a house influenced song that incorporates strong '90s soul, dance, garage and disco.

"Free" received positive reviews from contemporary music critics, who commended her vocal ability and production. The song has been noted as one of the best dance anthems during the '90s era. The song became Naté's most successful single to date, charting in many countries around the world. In Italy "Free" reached number 1. The song peaked inside the top forty in countries including the United Kingdom, Canada, Norway, Belgium, Australia and New Zealand. The song managed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 75 but reaching number one on the Hot Dance Club Songs.

Faithless - Insomnia

"Insomnia" is a song recorded by British musical group Faithless. Released as the band's second single, it became one of their most successful. It was released in 1995 and became a hit in Dance Charts while peaking at number 27 in the UK in 1995 and number three in 1996. It re-entered the UK charts in 2005 at number 17 after the release of their greatest hits compilation Forever Faithless and was certified Platinum by the BPI in 2015. It was voted by Mixmag readers as the fifth greatest dance record of all time.[1] The main refrain of "Insomnia" is a drum sample of "Let Me Love You for Tonight" by artist Kariya.

La Bouce - Be My Lover

"Be My Lover" is a song recorded by German-American Eurodance group La Bouche. It was released in March 1995 as the second single from their album, Sweet Dreams. It is one of their biggest hits, alongside "Sweet Dreams". This song was dubbed into many megamix tracks and has had remix versions. It reached number six on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. It also topped the American dance chart for two weeks in December 1995 and hit number one in Germany, Italy and Sweden.

Dr. Alban - It's My Life

"It's My Life" is a song by the Nigerian-Swedish artist Dr. Alban. It was released in April 1992 as the first single from his second studio album One Love. The song was a hit in most of the European countries where it was released, peaking at number one in Sweden, Austria, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Belgium and number two in the UK. In France, the song was marketed twice: first in 1992, then in 1993 because the song was used in a TV advert for Tampax tampons (as it was in the UK and other countries in Europe in 1992), thus giving to the single a second career. According to Infodisc website, about 91,000 copies of the single were sold in France.[2] It was also featured in the 1993 Bollywood film Baazigar. The song had enough Airplay on US-College Radio stations to reach the Billboard Modern rock tracks in 1992.

Haddaway - What Is Love

"What Is Love" is a song recorded by Trinidadian-German Eurodance artist Haddaway for his debut album, The Album. The song is recognizable by its refrain "What is love? Baby don't hurt me, don't hurt me... no more." It was a No. 1 hit in 13 countries.

Ace Of Base - All That She Wants

"All That She Wants" is a song by Swedish group Ace of Base. It was released in 1992 as the second single from their first studio album, Happy Nation and in the following year, it was released as the first single from the 1993 album The Sign in North America. Produced by Denniz Pop, Jonas Berggren, and Ulf Ekberg, the song was inspired by the Kayo song "Another Mother".

"All That She Wants" is a reggae-pop song which describes a sexually promiscuous woman, with the word "baby" being synonymous with "boyfriend". The song was first recorded in 1991, but went through many renditions before it was officially released.

The song was a commercial success, reaching the top of the charts in many countries, including Denmark, Germany, the UK and Australia. The single was certified platinum in the United States, where it peaked at number two, behind Meat Loaf's "I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)". The single sold over 1 million copies in 1993 in the United States alone, and became one of the best-selling singles of that year.On 7 July 2014, the single was re-released with new remixes as a digital EP.

C+C Music Factory - "Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)

"Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)" is a hit song by American dance group C+C Music Factory. It was released in late 1990 as the lead single from the album, Gonna Make You Sweat. The song charted internationally and achieved great success in the United States, Austria, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland where it reached number one on the charts.